


The Rainbow Confection

by mindfluff



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Coffee Shop Owner Dean Winchester, Fluff, Homophobic Language, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-11
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2019-01-15 22:09:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12329847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mindfluff/pseuds/mindfluff
Summary: Where Dean owns a coffee shop/café and Castiel is oblivious.





	The Rainbow Confection

**Author's Note:**

> I was incredibly bored at work one day when this [post](http://queer-alien-space-princess.tumblr.com/post/164751778103/reasons-lgbt-cafes-should-exist) crossed my dash and birthed a plot bunny. Which is preferable to the dust bunnies I usually find while bored at work.

Castiel walked into the little café, grateful for the warmth after walking from campus in the Kansas winter.  Gabriel had waxed poetic about it once he'd learned that Castiel hadn't been there yet, and he'd promised bodily harm if Castiel didn't make a trip to The Rainbow Confection before coming back home for winter break. 

Castiel unwrapped his scarf from around his neck and looked around, taking in the eclectic decor.  He bit back a laugh when he saw the large rainbow hanging above the register, with a stuffed Kermit the Frog sitting on one cloud with a banjo, and the words "The lovers, the dreamers and tea" flowing through the colors in elegant black script.

The walls were lined with shelves which had books and board games stacked haphazardly on them.  There were three rooms, with the front one containing the service counter and plush chairs both arranged in small groups and isolated into single seats. The second room contained traditional tables and chairs seating anywhere from two to four people.  The back room had four banquet-sized tables with eight chairs each and could be closed off from the rest of the cafe with a set of large barn-style doors that had glass panels in the top half.  They were currently open, and the glass panels framed artwork hung on the walls behind them.

At a little after nine on a Monday night, the place was mostly empty with the exception of a single rowdy group sitting at one table in the back room.  Just back from Thanksgiving, Castiel assumed students hadn't migrated to doing schoolwork off-campus yet but that the place would be busier as finals loomed. 

Castiel claimed one of the plush chairs in the front of the café and pulled over one of the rolling laptop desks so he'd be able to grade his tests.  Once he had his stuff settled, he walked up to the counter and looked at the pastries displayed in the cases.  He was a little confused by the apparent lack of employees, but the place was clean and not busy, so he supposed they must be working in the back.  It gave him time to peruse their wares and menu without the pressure he always felt when a barista was waiting for him, so he didn't mind.

He'd just decided on the pecan pie with his tea when he heard raucous laughter coming from the room behind him.  Castiel turned around only to be met with one of the most beautiful men he'd ever seen.  He was an inch or so taller than Castiel's own six feet, with light brown hair.  He was laughing with his whole body, head thrown back mouth wide and deep crow's feet at his nearly closed eyes.  The sleeves on his flannel shirt were rolled up his elbows and he could see a rainbow printed on the man's t-shirt underneath. 

"Of course I want combat Charlie, I'm a _dwarf_ , what do you expect?" the man called to the group in the back room, still chuckling.

"Oh shit, sorry," he stuttered as he turned and saw Castiel for the first time.  "I'm usually up here, but I was...and the fuckin' bell's busted on the....whatever," he stammered, lifting up the counter and heading behind the register. 

"Welcome to The Rainbow Confection; my name's Dean, and I hope you weren't waiting long."

Castiel smiled.  "No, I was actually happy you weren't up here.  It gave me a chance to thoroughly browse the menu and pastries."

Dean gave him a brilliant smile, "Eh, you could've done that even with me standing here. Anyway, what can I get you?"

"I'd like a slice of pecan pie and a cup of the Assam Melody, please," he answered.

Dean gave him a flirtatious wink. "Man after my own heart, you want that pie warmed up or as is?"

"What would you suggest?" Castiel asked.

"As is," Dean answered promptly.  "Its only good warm if there's ice cream and chocolate and that won't go with the tea."

"I shall go with your recommendation Dean," Castiel answered. 

Dean gave him another brilliant smile and turned around to get his tea and dessert.

 

Over the next two months, Castiel ended up spending quite a bit of time in The Rainbow Confection.  He could do his work there just as easily as he could while at alone at his apartment.  At the very least ,the heat worked consistently,  and Dean seemed to almost always be working. 

Occasionally there would be someone else behind the counter as well, and he'd learned all of their names.  Eileen was hard of hearing but managed running the register and helping customers without a problem.  Castiel thought she might have been the boss because she bullied Dean into doing things he didn't like, but it also seemed to be more in good fun than actual management, so he wasn't sure.  Kevin was a freshman at KU who's mother allowed him to work as long as he maintained his GPA; Krissy was a loudmouthed sarcastic girl who supported herself and her invalid father between two jobs as well as taking classes part time at the community college.  Over the holidays Dean was working more often than normal, but another man, very tall with long, floppy hair, joined him.  Castiel didn't catch his name in the two weeks he seemed to be there, but he spent a lot of time in the cafe when Eileen was working.

Castiel  found all of them to be quite pleasant, but really preferred it when Dean was working.  Over the winter break, the game rooms were mostly empty and the place had a different vibe to it with the students mostly gone.  Dean tended to play classic rock and when he wasn't busy in the kitchen or with customer, he'd come over and chat with Castiel. 

When January rolled around and the cafe got busier, and the chats with Dean mostly came to an end, Castiel realized he missed them.  He also realized he'd developed quite a crush on Dean.  He absolutely refused to do anything about it however.  First, he wasn't sure if Dean was into men, and second he wasn't going to exploit the power balance of customer to employee.  If Dean was interested in him, he would have to make the first move, and even then, Castiel wasn't sure about the ethics of it. 

By the end of the month, Castiel had figured out Dean always closed the cafe, and made sure to be there at the end of the day. He'd started help Dean sweep the floors and wipe down the tables for the simple privilege of conversation.  During his evening visits he'd found out the tables in the back were mostly used for table top gaming. Dean and his friends had been playing Storm King's Thunder the first night Castiel had come in, and that room was usually packed with games going at every table, or at the end of the semester, students frantically cramming for finals.  He'd found out Dean was a few years younger than he was, and that he'd ended up in Lawrence when his younger brother was accepted to KU, but didn't follow him to California for law school, choosing instead to wait in Kansas for him to come back.

In return, he'd told Dean about how he'd ended up teaching religious studies, but not exactly why he'd moved to KU from the small southern college he'd been teaching at.  He'd explained how his brother Gabriel, who wrote a blog about the country's best bakeries, had forced him to come in to try their baked goods even though Castiel usually preferred savory snacks.  He complained about students who took his classes on comparative religions and history of western religions thinking they were going to get an easy A and were upset when they actually had to study for the tests. 

All throughout their conversations however, he was careful to not overstep his bounds.  He knew what it was like working in the service industry when you had to be polite to the customer to get a good tip or to even simply keep your job.  It was something Castiel had found terribly difficult during his short stint in retail.  When drunk, he still ranted about the injustice of being fired from Macy's for not being cheerful enough.  Never mind that he'd been all of seventeen and had hated the job anyway.

Somehow, through all of the conversations he'd had with Dean and the small circle of friends Dean had introduced him to, he'd still missed a very key point about the café. 

"If you didn't want to get fucking hit on by a guy, then don't come to a gay café!" he heard Dean yell as he neared the eatery.

"We wanted to see the lesbos makin' out, not get hit on by a couple of fags," he heard another male voice yell back. 

"People's sexualities aren't on exhibit for you to get your rocks off, dumbass! That's what porn is for, at least those people are getting paid for it," he heard Dean yell back.   "Get the fuck out of here, and don't come back!"

"You can't ban us, faggot!" a different voice yelled.

Castiel reluctantly rounded the corner and saw Dean and three college age kids standing on the sidewalk in front of the cafe.  Well, Dean was standing in the doorway, and the kids were standing on the sidewalk throwing insults.       

"I can, I will and I did," Dean retorted.  "Your pictures are going up on the wall of shame, and everyone will know you not only came into a gay cafe, but you got kicked the fuck out."

Castiel lurched forward as the guy in the front charged Dean and took a swing at him.  His concern was unwarranted however, as he watched Dean deftly avoid the wild swing and then catch the other man's fist and wrap his arm behind him, preventing him from moving.

"Hiya sheriff," Dean called cheerfully while his attacker struggled to get away.  "You see him take that swing at me?"

Castiel had been so intent on the altercation happening in front of the cafe, that he hadn't noticed the sheriff's car pull up and the woman inside get out and head for them.

"Yes Dean, I did," the dark-haired woman pulling her handcuffs out.  "And I assume you want to press charges for attempted assault?"

"Yep," Dean answered, popping the p.  "And you can add hate crime to it if want 'cause he was calling me a faggot."

Castiel stood in gaping while the sheriff wrangled her prisoner into the back seat of the cruiser and then said a few words to Dean.  By the time Castiel had shaken off his shock, Dean had noticed him standing and had come up to him on the sidewalk.

"Dude, you ok?" He asked.  "You look a little pale there."

Castiel shook his head to clear it. "Yes Dean, I'm fine.  I just...wasn't expecting any of that."

"Yeah well, I'm kinda used to it," he said with a bitter laugh.   Dean clapped him on the shoulder. "Come on, let's get you some tea.  I made those little honey pecan cheesecakes you like today too," he said, ushering Castiel inside the cafe. 

Castiel allowed Dean to lead him over to his favorite table, and started getting his papers out as Dean walked away.  The noise of the cafe was like a dull roar in his ears; at some level he recognized it to be louder than usual, but was unable to focus enough to figure out what the cause was.

He was sitting in the comfy chair with his laptop open and on, but not logged in, when Dean came back over with his tea and cheesecake.

"Dude, you sure you're ok?" he asked, pulling up a chair opposite of him.  "You still don't look so hot."   Castiel looked up and saw a blush start creeping up Dean's face. "Well, I mean, you always look hot, but you still look a little pale."

Castiel forced himself to focus on Dean's words.  "I admit, that altercation shook me up a little, but I'm not really sure as to why.  I wasn't involved at all, and you most certainly had it well under control."

"Yeah well, it wasn't the first time some douche bag came in here for a show and got more than he bargained for," Dean replied.

Castiel cocked his head, unsure about why Dean had made that assumption.  "I have to confess Dean, I'm not sure what you mean by that."

Dean shrugged.  "We get a lot of tourists in here and at least once a semester frat boy  gets his undies in a bunch 'cause he got hit on."  Dean shook his head in frustration.  "I mean, I think I'd be insulted if I walked into a bakery like this and nobody hit on me."

Castiel furrowed his brow, he still felt like he was missing something.  "What do you mean 'a bakery like this'?  I see nothing wrong with this establishment."

Dean gaped at him.  "Dude.  This a queer space.  You know, like a gay bar but less booze?"

Castiel felt himself flushing.  "My apologies.  I didn't realize that."

Dean stared at him, his eyes going hard.  "Is that a problem?"

Castiel shook his head fervently. "Absolutely not, its actually quite comforting to know places like these exist outside of the club scene."

Dean looked at him closely, then relaxed minutely. "How the hell did you not realize that?  I mean, 'Rainbow Confection'?  There are literally rainbows and pride colors all over the place in here."

Castiel looked around the cafe, taking in the decor with this new information in mind.  Now that he was paying attention, he realized the colors ringing the rooms were the various pride flags on a repeating pattern, the front of the register had the bisexual colors painted on it,  while the sides had the colors of the asexual flag.

Castiel started chuckling.  "Now that you've told me, I don't know how I didn't realize it before.  Does this mean the staff is LGBTQIA as well?"

Dean waggled his eyebrows comically.  "Well, the owner is definitely bi, but I don't tend to ask my employees as a condition of their employment."

Castiel stopped laughing abruptly.  "You're the owner?" he squeaked.

"Dude, you've been coming here for months, and you hadn't figured that out either?" Dean threw back his head and laughed loudly.  "Buddy, you need to work on your observational skills."

"Leave him alone Dean," Castiel heard Krissy call from behind the counter.  "He just has a really low passive perception."

Dean laughed raucously and Castiel felt himself flush harder, even though he wasn't entirely sure what she meant. 

When Dean finished laughing, he clapped Castiel on the shoulder.  "Ok, let me bring you up to speed here.  This is the Rainbow Cafe, aka, a gay bar without the bar.  I opened it about six years ago when my brother was a freshman at KU because he'd joined Spectrum and they were complaining about how there's no queer spaces for underage kids to go.  I'd come into a little bit of money when my uncle died, and wasn't really happy working as a mechanic, and I thought he might be on to something, so here we are. "

"Is your brother bisexual as well?" Castiel asked.

Dean shook his head.  "Nah, kid's straight as an arrow no matter how bad he don't wanna be. "  A slight flush crept over his cheeks and he rubbed his neck as he continued. "I was 22 and really struggling with my sexuality.  Sammy knew I wasn't completely straight and thought joining Spectrum would be a good way to kinda tell me he didn't give a shit."  Dean snorted.  "Affected him more than me in the long run though; he's planning on being a civil rights lawyer when he graduates."

Castiel nodded as Dean explained.  "How did you come up with the name? I thought it was just a clever play on the muppets song."

Dean chuckled again. "Yeah, actually it kinda was," he answered gesturing at the stuffed Kermit sitting on the hanging rainbow.  "It just kinda fit though, you know?  I wanted to make it obvious this was a gay bakery, you know a place where people of all orientations could go and connect with other people like themselves without worrying about getting punched."

"So...that was not a common occurrence?" Castiel asked, gesturing to the front door. 

Dean shrugged, "Like I said, it happens about once  a semester.  We've got a system down where someone calls Jody and then I kick 'em out and provoke 'em.  If they take a swing, she takes 'em in, if they go away, she's seen them so if there's a problem later she can track 'em down.  Point is, in here you're safe.  First year or two years I took some punches, but none of my customers have ever been hurt in here."

Just then they were interrupted as Krissy brought over a cup of coffee and a mini apple pie and plunked it down on the table in front of Dean. 

"Don't say I never did anything for you," she said with a smirk as she walked away.

Castiel we left with a feeling he'd missed something - again - and looked up to see Dean blushing, his freckles disappearing into the flush of red.

"Damn kids," Dean muttered under his breath.  "Look, I don't mean to bother you, I mean, I know you come in here to work, and if you're working here then it must be crazy wherever you live, so uh...I'll just....go back to work or something."  Dean grabbed his mug and plate with his dessert on it and stands up, awkwardly banging into the chair he was sitting on.

It Castiel a few beats to realize that Krissy was trying to make Dean sit with him for more than a quick conversation, but when he did, he stood up abruptly, knocking into the table hard enough to slosh the tea out of his mug.  The noise caught Dean's attention and he turned around, face still red.

"Dean," Castiel said, "you could join me if you'd like.  I'd much rather talk to you than read bad essays discussing how religious beliefs can impact scientific study."

"You sure, Cas?" Dean asked, a hopeful look on his face.

"Yes Dean, I'd very much like to spend some time with you," Castiel said with a small smile.

"Really?  As like a date?" Dean asked.

"Definitely like a date," Castiel answered with a small smile.  "But only if I can take you out for a real date later."

Dean grinned brilliantly and place his food back down on the table. "Deal.  Now how the hell does religion influence science and why in God's name would you make someone write a paper on it."

Cas chuckled and sat down, mopping up his spilled tea.  "Well, I need to grade them on something, and it seemed like a good idea at the time."

Dean gave a full body laugh.  "Dude, you have no idea how many stories start with that line."

Cas grinned at him.  "I look forward to hearing them Dean."

**Author's Note:**

> Come visit me on [tumblr](http://brainfuzz.tumblr.com)


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